How to have a more healthy, varied diet???
I am trying very hard to serve healthy food to my family, mostly focusing on fresh, non-processed food. I find the hardest thing is to have a lot of variety. We don't eat much fish because I feel like I can't pick a healthy one that's not farmed or over fished. So, for animal protein, it's chicken, turkey, pork, and a little grass-fed beef. We also like tofu. For vegetables, we always have a salad, and then what my husband and kids will eat are: artichokes, green beans, carrots (raw only), asparagus, corn, broccoli, and zucchini. Not really much of a rotation. Or maybe it is great variety and I just need some new ideas. I pledged about a year ago to stop buying cookbooks but now feel like I could use a little help. Do Serious Eaters have a favorite vegetarain / healthy cookbook? I am looking at both the Greens cookbook by Madison and the Moosewood cookbook. Any other suggestions would be great, too!
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16 Comments:
Good for you. I've managed to cut out almost all processed foods. I'm just a little shy of being fanatic about it, but it's close.
Rather than buying "healthy" cookbooks which sometimes tend to make you feel like you're punishing yourself, maybe look into some ethnic cuisines. Spices make everything more interesting.
While you've got a pretty short list of veggies, you might find that the list could expand if you serve things that are really different in preparation. Hummus, for example, is mostly chickpeas, but it's an interesting dip. Serve it with whole wheat pita chips and it's got lots of fiber. And you can spice it up with way you like it or leave it more bland.
Is your family so squeamish about veggies that they would pick something apart? Spring rolls filled with veggies are good.
Meals don't have to be protein, veg and starch on a plate, which is a rut that a lot of people fall into. You can make meatballs out of one of the acceptable meats and serve it with pasta. And if you want, you can use whole wheat pasta. Does your family like soups? Stir fry? Mexican food? Indian?
If you're making your own bread (did I mention I'm a little fanatic?) you can add all sorts of interesting things to the dough. Of course you can use whole wheat flour and other grains, but cooked winter squash adds a nice softness and sweetness to the bread but doesn't scream "scary vegetable" to anyone. Cooked oatmeal disappears into bread dough and adds a decent amount of fiber. And if you make your own dough, you can do interesting things with flatbreads and pizzas for dinner and still have them be relatively healthy.
dbcurrie at 1:12AM on 11/04/09
Go to the library and check out Mark Bittman's books. "How to Cook Everything" and "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" might be what you're looking for. Most of us here are Mark Bittman fans. If you borrow them from the library, you can try them for a couple of weeks to see if they're cookbooks worth investing in for your family. Moosewood is a really good book.
And don't neglect fruit in your meal planning. I don't think there's any fruit that can't be used at dinner, whether by itself as a side dish (like melons)or as part of a recipe (pork stew with apples and sweet potatoes). When my boys were young, I had no problem allowing them to substitute a fruit for a vegetable they weren't quite ready to like, such as asparagus.
betteirene at 2:18AM on 11/04/09
I second the Bittman cookbook recommendation. I use both books constantly.
As for your fish conundrum, do you have a Seafood Guide from the Monterey Bay Aquarium? You can download and print a pocket guide (there's also an iPhone app) specific to seafood in your region (assuming you're in the U.S.). The guide specifies which fish are best to eat, which are good alternatives, and which to avoid. It's a really handy tool.
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/download.aspx
SEAtoNYC at 6:42AM on 11/04/09
It sounds to me like you've got pretty good variety except you haven't mentioned the grain dept. Also, if you haven't been roasting vegetables this might open a whole new set of flavors and veggies that your family would consider. You might vary salads with veggie stir-fries and veggies over rice with raisins, nuts, and curried yogurt. Add fruits to your salads?
A friend just gave me Andrea Chesman's "366 delicious ways to cook rice, beans, and grains" (thinking it would give me some great bento ideas) and the recipes are outstanding. Not a lot of unusual ingredients. some traditional things (baked beans, vegetarian chili) lots of pilafs, risottos, soups, burgers, whole grain muffins. I've got several vegetarian cookbooks and this is going to become a favorite.
http://www.amazon.com/Garden-Fresh-Vegetable-Cookbook-Andrea-Chesman/dp/1580175341
lemonfair at 6:57AM on 11/04/09
Spices on the same old things can change the picture a little too. Something with shoyu will taste different with saffron or garam masala or ginger.
I mirror the comments on widening the options to pick from.
Cassaendra at 7:31AM on 11/04/09
I like Faith Willinger's Red, White, and Greens: The Italian Way with Vegetables, which is not a health cookbook at all, but it has plenty of delicious recipes where vegetables are the star. The book is divided into chapters by vegetable, so it would be very easy for you to expand your repertoire of your family's favorite veggies. Of course it's got plenty of pasta and risotto recipes and because Willinger's husband is from Florence I believe, Tuscan preparations abound. It's also an interesting read about the history of the foods we eat. Definitely worth checking out from the library.
Otabenga at 8:52AM on 11/04/09
You didn't mention beans - but legumes are a great source of protein, fiber and all kinds of other good stuff. And bean chili or lentil-based sloppy joes may be hits with the kids. Grains (brown rice, farro, bulgur, barley, corn, etc.) and pseudograins (quinoa, amaranth, teff, etc.) provide nutrients as well as variety (tabbouleh, pilaf, homestyle sushi, risotto, soups, rice pudding, fajitas with refried beans, paella ...)
Maybe you could get the kids to eat winter squash? It's good roasted - you could even turn it into "fries." Or bake and puree with butter or margarine, cinnamon and nutmeg.
KarynMC at 9:15AM on 11/04/09
I eat a lot of wild caught keta salmon, it's just as good as the more expensive species and can be bought frozen for $6 a pound.
redfish at 9:40AM on 11/04/09
I love you guys! Thank you for the recommendations and I will check out the Bittman books - have been wondering about How to Cook Everything for a while.
@SEAto NYC Yes, I do have the MBA guide - will dig it out and start using it again. Thanks!
@redfish - where do you buy keta?
Potboiler at 10:05AM on 11/04/09
I'll second the library and third Bittman. I bought the how to cook everything veg and love it. I kind of wish I had the other one too because the books are so user-friendly that I want his answers to my meat-based questions, but I was looking to go healthier and cut down on meat so I went with the veg book - and I love it.
But yes, definitely hit your library up. I stop there once a month or so to grab a new cookbook. Sometimes it just gets ignored, but most of the time I grab at least one or two (if not more) new recipes, which does wonders for avoiding a rut. And if you find yourself using something constantly or loving every recipe you make from it, then you know it's worth buying.
I'll also echo the beans and squash suggestions. So good, so many ways to make that even if your kids may not think they like it from one instance, you could probably just serve it and they might not recognize it. Also, get creative with your salads. You can make salads the norm for lunch and go nuts with what you'll put in: fruit, nuts, seeds, goat cheese, etc.
Good luck!
joyyy at 10:11AM on 11/04/09
What an awesome home movement!
I applaud your efforts and seriously admire them.
I fourth Bittman. Bitten Blog is written by him; but I would also suggest his books. As an author; he tries to help his audience simply prepare "good" food. He's also known as the "minimalist" because of this. Intersting fact: he's also a licensed pilot! :D
I think generally you have the right idea and you just need some inspiration. I personally love to do lots of baked veggie dishes with quinoa, rices and couscous. I hope you get the info you need!
:D good luck
hungrychristel at 10:54AM on 11/04/09
moosewood rules. i tend to buy that for all of my vegetarian fools-i mean, friends ;)
gastronomeg at 11:06AM on 11/04/09
@Potboiler:
l get my salmon mostly at supertarget or aldi (never walmart, they sell some nasty fish).
If frozen wild caught salmon doesn't specify the species, it is probably keta, also known as chum salmon or dog salmon. The more expensive species are coho, sockeye and chinook.
Keta are a smaller species which I guess is why they are cheaper, and the flesh may not be quite as pink, but they taste good and are just as nutritious and there are a lot of keta salmon out there, no worries about them getting overfished.
Supertarget carries both skin-on and skin-off fillets, the skin is supposedly nutritious (lots of omega 3) so I usually buy those (also they are a bit cheaper).
redfish at 11:17AM on 11/04/09
If you're worried about fish, check out this site for information on overfished species by region:
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/download.aspx
They give you "best," "good," and "avoid" choices, including information on imported vs. domestic, wild-caught vs. farmed, and species that are partially sustainably raised/caught. For example, I live on the West Coast, so I go for certain varieties of Alaska salmon, Pacific cod, black cod, and Pacific halibut because their fishing is well-regulated and they don't contain dangerous mercury levels. Although salmon can be pricey, most varieties that are "best" choices are also on the cheaper side.
GirlFromJetCity at 11:39AM on 11/04/09
Eggs are always good any meal of the day. Use the veggies on the family approved list to make omelettes or a fritatta. Or have breakfast for dinner!
erinlovestoeat at 11:55AM on 11/04/09
i like the idea of integrating more vegetarian recipes into your rotation... people think that vegetarians meals might be boring, but apparently chicken is boring too because people get tired of eating it the same way over and over...
visit some blogs or websites to gather some ideas on how to mix and match what you already love into different, interesting preparations. Also, explore your local market and try new ingredients you might have never tried before... look for recipes using these new ingredients to enlarge your recipe repertoire.
MadelynRodriguez at 5:50PM on 11/06/09